Well it’s official! December has greeted us and we are now in full Holiday swing. As the shopping, parties, and general festivities pile up on our already busy schedules there is a very good chance that your stress levels could begin to rise. If you’re anything like me, you probably have a long laundry list of things that you’d love to do during the holidays but many of the things that you’re obligated to do take precedence, and as a result the holidays come and go, leaving the memory of the season a bit lackluster.

Here’s my suggestion to you this week, as we bust out our calendars and begin to fill in the dates with work parties, spouse’s work parties, school events, shopping excursions, photos with Santa, Church events, etc., make a list of the things that you’d absolutely LOVE to incorporate into your schedule. Maybe it’s baking your grandmother’s favorite recipe of cookies with your kids. Maybe it’s taking the family out for a car ride to look at the Christmas lights in your neighborhood, or maybe it’s making a new tradition.

Take a look at the things you feel obligated to do and ask yourself “Does this bring me joy?” If the answer is “No” and if it’s something you can say “No” to, don’t schedule it!

Saying “No” to the things that don’t bring us joy will open up our schedule for more opportunities for us to say “Yes” to the things that do!

If you can fit some of the things that inspire you, light you up, and bring joy to your holidays into your calendar, your memories of the season will burn so much brighter for years to come.

There will always be some things that we simply must do because of obligation that can’t be avoided but if you can begin to weed out the unnecessary fillers and replace them with things that we know we will love doing than the holidays will indeed be a more joyous occasion!